Supporting British Tech: The Story Behind Site Seedling
We chose to build Site Seedling in the UK for genuine reasons. Here's what "UK-based" means in practice and why we're transparent about our infrastructure.
When we started building Site Seedling, we didn't sit in a boardroom and decide to be a "UK-based company" as a marketing strategy. We built Site Seedling in the UK because that's where we are, that's where our customers are, and that's where our business makes sense.
But as the world has changed around us — with growing concerns about data sovereignty, the US CLOUD Act, and uncertain transatlantic tech relations — being UK-based has become something we're increasingly proud of. And we think it's worth talking about.
What "UK-based" actually means
It's easy for any company to claim they're "UK-based" while outsourcing everything abroad. So let's be specific about what it means for Site Seedling:
- UK-registered company: Site Seedling is registered with Companies House. We pay UK taxes and operate under UK law.
- UK-hosted servers: Your website data — your business information, your customers' enquiries, your content — is stored on servers in the UK.
- UK-based support: When you contact us, you're speaking to someone in the UK who understands your business context.
- UK-based development: The platform is designed and built in the UK, by people who understand the needs of UK tradespeople.
- UK billing: Your subscription is in pounds sterling, from a UK company.
The UK tech ecosystem
The UK has a thriving technology sector. According to recent figures, the UK tech industry employs millions of people and contributes significantly to the national economy. When you choose a UK-based platform over a US alternative, your subscription money stays in the UK economy, supporting UK jobs and UK innovation.
We think that matters. Not because US companies are bad, but because supporting local businesses is how local economies grow. It's the same principle that drives your customers to choose a local trade business over a national chain.
Being honest about what we use
We believe in transparency, so here's the full picture. While Site Seedling is a UK company with UK servers, we do use some services from international providers:
- Cloudflare (US-based) provides our website security and CDN. It's a proxy layer that routes traffic and protects against attacks, but it doesn't store your data at rest. Almost every UK website uses Cloudflare or a similar service — it's an industry standard.
- Stripe (US-based) handles payment processing. They operate under UK/EU data processing agreements, and we're actively exploring UK-based payment alternatives.
The critical distinction is this: your business data, your customers' enquiries, your website content — that all lives on UK servers, governed by UK law. We're a UK company, and no US legislation can compel us to hand over your data.
We could hide this information and simply say "we're UK-based." But we'd rather be honest. We think you deserve to know exactly where your data lives and who can access it.
Looking forward
We're committed to being the best website platform for UK tradespeople. That means continuing to invest in UK infrastructure, UK support, and UK-focused features that help your business succeed online.
We're also committed to transparency. As our infrastructure evolves, we'll keep you informed about what's UK-based and what isn't. We think that's the minimum you should expect from your website provider.
Thank you for supporting British tech. We're proud to be part of the UK technology ecosystem, and we're proud to help UK businesses succeed online.